


Close Call

by PurpleArrowzandLeather



Series: Kings and Queens of Hearts [10]
Category: Destiny (Video Games)
Genre: F/M, Friendship, Guidance, Near Death Experiences
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-10
Updated: 2019-06-10
Packaged: 2020-04-24 06:50:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 8,650
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19168009
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PurpleArrowzandLeather/pseuds/PurpleArrowzandLeather
Summary: Since becoming the leaders of the House of Crows, Kayleigh and Uldren are making their rounds in an attempt for diplomacy. It doesn't quite go as planned.





	Close Call

          It' s  been a long day already in the Dreaming City. Uldren and Kayleigh have been running around non-stop to bring a little peace to the other Fallen ketches, but it is a rough effort. The only House that has accepted their invitation of peace so far is the House of Judgement,  Variks  leading the diplomatic mission at its head. They almost couldn’t believe it when they had found him in the EDZ, hiding with his brethren.

           Today, it’s the House of Winter, though less for diplomacy, and more for a favor.  And after that, the House of Devils, but they aren’t exactly looking forward to that visit.

          Uldren strides through their base with purpose, seeming completely at ease. Their escort is taking them to their Kell, the six Captains less than happy with their presence. The Captain that Uldren brought along seems more than happy to walk behind them and chatter. She’s really quite sociable, and it’s good for their relations with their escort anyway. How Uldren managed to get in the front door is still a mystery to Kayleigh. His knowledge of the Fallen language is definitely a plus. 

           They walk into the throne room, Uldren pulling his hood down before greeting their Kell with a dip of his head. “Tidings, Kell of the House of Winter.”

          The Kell gazes at Kayleigh and Uldren, his eyes narrowing on the Captain at their side. He nods. “Kell...of the House... Crows. Well-met.”

          Kayleigh listens closely as Uldren offers to speak in the Fallen language, her understanding not quite as good, but fine all the same. The Kell refuses politely, deeming it well enough that Uldren knows any Fallen-speak at all. 

          “What do you come... to ask?”

          “We are in search of rouge Fallen from the old House of  Exile.  They were involved in the riot on the Reef and the murder of several Guardians on the Shore.”

          The Kell makes a scratchy noise, clicking furiously. “Speak of murderers? Guardians kill thousands of our kind.” He looks at Kayleigh pointedly.

          Uldren’s brow furrows. “True, but my House is a peaceful one. I seek only to locate the rogues.”

          The Kell eyes their Captain again. “You. Your name?”

          “ Aksisss ,  firsssst  Captain... of the  Housssse  of  Crowsss .” she croaks. She hasn’t quite gotten the hang of “s” yet. 

          The Kell makes a surprised noise. “Honor.... to your name,  Aksis .”

          “Gratitude.”

          “You... support this  _ hunt _  of Fallen warriors?”

Aksis  bobs her head. “ Yesss , good Kell.  _ They _  come from...  Housssse  Exile.”

          Kayleigh doesn’t like the look the Kell gives her, but he doesn’t say anything for a long time. “House Exile?”

          “Wanted  outssidersss .  Bountiessss , good Kell.”

          The Kell stands, picking up his shrapnel launcher in his arms, the other four pulling out various blades. “What would you... ask of me, Kell?”

           “I would ask only for a location, if you have heard anything.” Uldren answers, ignoring the way Kayleigh subtly moves in front of him.

          “House Winter will.... aid in hunt, Kell of House Crows.”

          “My many thanks, Kell  Virkses .” Uldren says lowly, shifting to bow. 

          Kayleigh puffs out a relieved breath.

          “Uldren Sov.....” the Kell begins. “Kell Prince.”

          “It has been an honor, and you have the blessing of my House for your assistance.”

          The  Kell roars and Kayleigh fights to stifle her instinctual reaction of pulling out her gun. Fallen of all sizes flood into the room and they all wear the sigil of the House of Winter.  Virkses  gives them all orders and they follow him out the door. Uldren and Kayleigh trail along behind them.

          “You knew he wouldn’t have a location for you, didn’t you?” Kayleigh hums. 

          “Maybe. But this is the first step towards peaceful negotiation. If he can help us now, he may come back and ask a favor in the future, and then maybe we could join Houses.”

          “I never would have pegged you for being diplomatic, Uldren Sov.”

          “The House of Winter is the easy one, my light. We’ll just have to see how the House of Devils goes. We have yet to ask them if they’ve heard anything, and they probably wouldn’t tell us if they did unless we had a peace offering.”

          Kayleigh considers. “Yeah. I suppose they would be. They  kinda  hate us a little bit.”

          “Your lot  _ was _  making quite an effort at killing any Kell in sight for a long time.”

          “Captains, Archons,  Kells . It’s a long list.”

          “Speaking of Archons...” Uldren glances back at  Aksis . “What do you think she would say about a promotion?”

          Kayleigh chuckles. “As long as she gets an extra set of arms, she’ll be thrilled. You know how much Fallen love receiving extra arms , especially after having been docked. ”

          “It’s a matter of honor.”

          “I know.” Kayleigh nods, sliding her fingers into Uldren’s hand. 

          They watch as the Kell of the House of Winter sends out his scouts in all directions, barking and chittering orders with looming authority. 

          A colorful sparrow zips into the base and it’s extremely hard to miss the familiar figure riding it. The Kell snarls at it, kicking the sparrow. The Hunter bounces over to them and Kayleigh hugs Cayde as he laughs. His sparrow explodes.

          The Kell stomps over, growling at Cayde and pointing three fingers on three different hands at him. “Invader!”

          Uldren raises an appeasing hand. “ Virkses , this is a friend. His name is Cayde-6. He’s... an ambassador from the Vanguard.”

          Cayde scowls. “Ambassador, really? I’m not great at the whole diplomacy thing, buddy. I’m only here  cuz ’ I-”

          Kayleigh nudges him. “ _ Shut up _ .”

Cayde’s pouts , but he does as he’s told.

          “I apologize for his rude entrance. It was a mistake on his part.”  Uldren  chuckles. “We can’t take him anywhere.”

          The Kell relaxes a little, crouching down to better see Cayde. He pokes at his metal horn, making a motion with his hands that screams “ _ Do that again and I’ll kill you.” _  Kayleigh is amused.

          Cayde chuckles nervously as the Kell walks away. “Whew. Sorry, guys. Hadn’t realized I was intruding.”

          Uldren rolls his eyes. “Aren’t you always?”

          Cayde pounces on Uldren, engaging him in a friendly Hunter scuffle the same way he used to with  Andal . Uldren growls, rolling them over and pi n ning Cayde without so much as a second thought. Cayde wrestles to get away and Kayleigh shakes her head.  _ You just never change, do you _ _ , _ _  Cayde? _

          The Kell turns when he sees them fighting, watching Kayleigh stand idly by with a smile on her face. He steps over to her, his long  legs  getting him to her in only a few  strides.  Kayleigh laughs as Cayde tumbles back over a ridge, the uneven surface causing him to fall. Kayleigh remembers the first time Cayde tried this with  Uldren . He freaked out a little, thinking Cayde was trying to attack him. 

          Now, though, he’ll play along, if only to appease  Cayde’s  need for a little activity. 

          “High Priestess?” The Kell rumbles, his speech drawn out and lower than before.

          “What’s up?”

          The Kell tilts his head at her wording, but continues on. “Why do they fight, if the Cayde-6 is... friend?”

          Kayleigh smiles, Uldren yelping as Cayde drags him to the ground. “It’s a Hunter thing. Well.... mostly a Cayde thing, as far as I’ve been able to tell.”

          “This fight.... agreeable?”

          “That’s a good way to put it.”

          The Kell of the House of Winter watches on, confused by the display before him. “Your Kell... strong, is he?”

          Kayleigh nods once. “He’s a survivor, and he’s adaptable.” she sighs. “So not words I ever thought I would say about Uldren Sov.”

          “Was ...  your enemy once, yes?”

          Kayleigh laughs. “I wouldn’t say enemy, so much as one of the most unfriendly acquaintances I ever made.”

          “Now he has ketch, and High Priestess?”

          Kayleigh smiles warmly at Uldren as he ducks under a swing from Cayde, a grin on his face. “Now he has a family. And I would die before I let something hurt him.”

          The Kell makes a weird noise and Kayleigh realizes that it’s laughter. “Loyal to House... Loyal to... Kell.  Eliksni  Houses... not so different.”

          Kayleigh raises a pondering brow, realizing that he’s not wrong. 

          She doesn’t have time to consider it before Uldren is reeling towards her. She catches him under the arms, his back to her chest. She gets him upright, pressing a light kiss to his cheek before pushing him back towards Cayde. Cayde squawks in a rather undignified manner as Uldren lands on him. 

          The Kell watches Cayde and Uldren carefully, his eyes sometimes moving to the Kell sigil on Uldren’s cloak.  “A strange banner , yes?”

          Kayleigh shrugs. “I wasn’t exactly going for  cookie-cutter Fallen design when I made it.”

“You are his…. life-mate, correct?”

          Kayleigh  lifts a hand  to show him the  darker  skin of her tattoo, the  lines around her ring finger bold against her Awoken skin. Two golden  lines  go up her arm underneath her armor . She tugs her collar down enough to show  Virkses  the two golden crows crossing her collarbone.

          “His are blue.”

“By your side… always?”

          Kayleigh nods.  “His older sister presided over the union and…” Kayleigh laughs to herself. “… Cayde was the  best man. He  got his daughter to be a  flowergirl , and she was the most adorable thing I’ve ever seen.”

“ Your union, long is it?”

          “Two years. Three and a half since… well, since he escaped the Darkness.”  Kayleigh looks at Uldren , he and Cayde now chatting amicably with their legs dangling over a thousand-foot drop. “He doesn’t like to talk about it.”

Virkses  looks down at her. “You are… not what  House Winter… expected.”

“I live to  surprise.”

“Other Houses… joined under your banner ?”

          “The House of Judgement. Our friend  Variks  was very helpful, since they had already  joined Queen Mara Sov of the Reef. Both alliances continue to be strong.”

“Sov?”

          “Uldren’s older sister. She’s a bit scary, but  she’s awesome.”

          “… she fills with awe?”

          “Well, that too, but  more like… amazing,  incredible, powerful.”

Virkses  makes a croaking noise  as he understands. “Your House… reasonable, it seems. Yet, no assurance of Guardian…  cooperation.”

          “When we joined Houses with the House of Judgement, the Guardians were all informed to leave them alone. We only had one accident, and it was because  one of the Guardians dropped off the grid and didn’t get the memo.”

          “… M emo?”

          “Message. Memorandum.” 

“ Eliksni  die d?”

          “Minor injury. Another Guardian was around to stop him.”

Virkses  seems pleased and Kayleigh can’t help but enjoy that feeling . It isn’t often that she gets to speak to  other Fallen, especially ones not in her own House.  Uldren is usually the one doing the talking anyway. It’s a lot safer that way, since Kayleigh isn’t exactly the model of diplomacy.

Kayleigh sighs. “Well, it was very good to meet you, Kell  Virkses . We have to be going now. ”

          “High Priestess?”

          “Yes…?”

          “House Winter will… consider  treaty… with House Crows. Will inform  soon… long as Guardians not attack my ketch.”

          “I will be sure to let everyone know. I want to be friends,  Virkses , and right now, we need all the allies we can get.”

          “True, this is. Luck , we… wish you.”

          “Thank you, good Kell. ”

          Kayleigh  raises a hand to him and he folds it between four of his own,  rubbing two finger s  over her knuckles with a short bow.  Kayleigh allows him to let go first, dipping her head and heading off to collect her boys. 

“Uldren.”

          He gets up, turning around to face her. “ Yes, my light?”

“You may have that treaty with the House of Winter sooner than you thought.  He wants us to stop Guardians from killing those in his ketch before he decides.”

          “We can do that.”

          Kayleigh nods, asking Jake to shoot the message out across the  worlds.  She has her ship swing around to pick them up and they transmat inside, flying towards the last known location of the House of Devils. Jake informs her after a few minutes that he’s gotten confirmations out of half of the Guardians, some missions stopping mid-stride as they work around their new parameters. Apparently, the House of Winter got the message as well, their response time a little slower, but still good. The cease-fire between the two groups amuses Kayleigh. Most Guardians have received the message before they even reach the next House. 

          Uldren is pleased.

          When they arrive, three things happen. Kayleigh veers to avoid a rocket, sensors going crazy as it just about takes them out of the sky. They transmat to the surface, Kayleigh stumbling a bit as she dodges a line rifle shot. Cayde pulls them both behind cover. Aksis  stays well back at Uldren’s command. He doesn’t want her to get caught in the crossfire.

          “Remind me again how you escaped the Tower?” Kayleigh gasps, ducking as a shock pistol shot sails over her head. “Because I just realized you aren’t supposed to be here, for this exact reason.”

          “Now you figure it out.” Cayde huffs, twirling the Ace of Spades as he slides another clip into it, the action smooth and practiced. “I got  Ikora’s  permission.”

          “I didn’t know she could do that.” Kayleigh shouts, leaping from behind cover and hurling a grenade over their rusty walls. 

          Cayde laughs, tossing Uldren a clip at his request. “Well, I don’t think she’s supposed to be able to, but...” he jumps up twice, slinging a volley of knives at their enemies. “I think Zavala knows better than to question her!”

          Uldren huffs. “Wise of him.”

          Kayleigh chuckles. “Anyone would be out of their mind to try to get in her way.” She clears what’s left of the outer ring around the compound with her  Sunshot . She’d become even more fond of it after using  Cayde’s  gun, the explosions bringing joy right into her heart. “So, now that that’s done... who has the white flag?”

          Uldren sighs. “I suppose we’ll have to surrender once we get inside. We didn’t get off to a good start.”

          “They attacked us first.” Kayleigh reasons. “I think they should be able to forgive a little self-defense.”

          They walk up to the large door, knocking first instead of hacking it like they usually would. Kayleigh mutters about how this has to be the weirdest thing she’s ever done. Cayde raises a brow. 

          “Okay, fine. Maybe not the weirdest, but it’s definitely up there.” When Cayde laughs in response, she glares at him. “Why are you here, again?”

          Cayde shrugs, stilling as the door opens. The three raise their hands in surrender, the Fallen squawking going further and further back as they talk to each other. Three Archons come out to intercept them. The largest of them Towers over Uldren and Cayde, Kayleigh just behind them.

          “What is your purpose here,  _ Guardians _ ?” he hisses, his tone clearer than even  Variks .

          Uldren stares up at him, his gaze fearless. “We seek five wanted Captains from the House of Exile.”

          “And what do we get in return?” the leader growls. 

          Uldren glances back at Kayleigh. “Told you. Peace offering.”

          “Really? You chose now to say ‘I told you so’?”

          The Archon raises his arms to strike one of the boys, but Kayleigh pushes forwards. “Wait! I’ve got something you’ll like!”

          “And what might that be?”

          Kayleigh has Jake drop the gift into her hands. “It’s an emote.”

          “A... what?”

          Cayde sighs, shaking his head. “You really know how to pick ‘ em , don’t you, buddy?” 

          Uldren defends her lightly, but the Archon takes the emote from her hands. “What does it do?”

          “You just press that button on the end there, and it makes fun shapes.”

          The Archon growls. “This... had better not be a trick,  Lightbearer .”

          Kayleigh scowls at him. “Do you really think I would give you an explosive so close to my life-mate's face?”

          The Archon and Uldren give her funny looks at the moniker. Still, the answer seems to encourage him and he turns on the small capsule. Nothing happens.

          “How does it work?”

          “Just think of what you want it to draw, and it’ll do it. I mean, if you do a gun or something, it’ll do its best impression, but that’s all it takes, really.” Kayleigh shrugs.

          The Archon nods once, holding it gently in his hand. A fish appears and the Archon howls with glee, swiping a hand through it. Kayleigh laughs as he summons more fish and they swim around him. There are inquisitive chitters all around them as the Archon plays with his new  toy. The Archon  shakes the emote-maker,  his fellow Archons  reaching to try it, too. It appears that they have the manners of children when it comes to sharing and Kayleigh sighs.

          “I have more .”

          The Archons zero in on her and Uldren takes her hand .  The y  catch the action and the  lead  Archon  tilts its head. “Who are you?”

          “I am Kayleigh Sov, High Priestess of the  House of Crows.”

The Archon notes Uldren’s hand still twined with Kayleigh’s. “And you ?”

          “ Prince  Uldren Sov. Kell of the House . ”

The Archon confers with his two compatriots  for a few moments  before turning back to the group. It looks at Cayde . “Your name , Guardian?”

          “I’m Cayde-6, Hunter Vanguard from the Tower on Earth, and ambassador to the House of Crows. ” He looks at Uldren for approval and Uldren smirks. 

“Do you keep  Eliksni  company, Kell Prince?”

“I do.” Uldren calls for  Aksis  over his shoulder and  she  zips inside.  “This is  Aksis .”

          “Does she bear a title ?”

          Kayleigh finds it a little unnerving still to he ar  a Fallen speak so well in  their tongue.

Aksis  chitters out agreement. “ Aksisss ,  firsst  Captain of the  Houssse  of Crowsss.” she says proudly. She r eally, r eally likes that title.

The Archon looks surprised, but he  dips his head respectfully. “Very well, Kell of House Crows, and … entourage.  You merit a meeting with our Kell. ”

Cayde laughs. “This reminds me of the old days, Kayleigh. You always could talk your way into things.”

          “That just means I never have to find a way out of them. ” Kayleigh snickers.

          The three Archons lead them through the encampment. Cayde hums under his breath , looking around with excitement in his  Exo  eyes. 

          “So, this is what you two get up to when I’m not around.  Gettin ’ into trouble.”

“We  have all the fun.”

          Cayde pouts  a little. “I’ll have you know the Hunter Vanguard gig isn’t all it’s cracked up to be.”

          Kayleigh shakes her head. “We know. You’ve told us like, oh I don’t know,  _ a thousand times _ . ”

          Cayde chuckles, but the sound is weak.  “I know.”

          Kayleigh puts a hand on his shoulder. “Don’t worry, Cayde.  Just a few more years and you’ll hit the minimum term.”

          “ I just… don’t know what I want to do . Doing this honors  Andal , but what good does that do if I’m  miserable for the rest of my life? I  ain’t  made for this  kinda  thing, Kayleigh.”

“I think  Andal  would want you to do what’s best for you. He knew you were the best  Hunter for the job.  If you weren’t able to keep going, he’d want you to find the next Hunter to dare. ”

          “The problem is that I need someone who can be content in the Tower  and is also good at diplomacy. Most Hunters wouldn’t touch this job with a  Arcstaff , much less actually take it willingly. ”

          “I don’t know, Cayde. Who do you know that is really happy when they are there ? They have a reason to stay  there …”

          “Are you actually suggesting  that I come up with a dare for Shiro?”

          “He said he’d take it .”

          “I don’t know, Kayleigh.”

“Cayde, the only way you’ll know if that’s what he wants is if you ask him. Shiro has always been  better at staying put than you. He’s never felt the urge to look into his past, and he definitely doesn’t have as big of reasons to leave.”

          “True, but …”

          “Cayde, I know you.  Your dare was probably that some Hunter someday was going to kill you.”

          “Well….”

“See? Find some mission that you can both go on together, run it by Zavala  and Ikora, and then ask him.”

Cayde looks down at the ground. “ I just… I don’t want it to turn out like… like what happened with  Andal .  I mean, Shiro  is almost all I’ve got left of him, and… well, you know.”

          “Cayde, this’ll turn out fine. You should have told me about this sooner, though.  W ouldn’t have had to ring your hands so much.”

          Cayde smiles. “Thanks, Kayleigh. I’ve, uh,  kinda  been  thinkin ’ about it since we faked my death.”

          “ I know.”

          Uldren squeezes her hand and she almost slams into him before she realizes he was reminding her that the world around her exists.  They stand in front of two ornate doors  that the three Archons push open to admit them. The lead Archon makes the introductions in Fallen - speak, but Uldren cuts him off politely, instead addressing the Kell himself . The Kell sits up straighter as Uldren  greets him in his own tongue, pleased with him.

          The first thing the Kell asks after he’s finished is what the group’s peace offering was.  The Archon hands the emote-maker to the Kell and he inspects it  with careful hands. The Archon explains it to him and he spends the next few minutes alternating between mesmerized and confused. The Kell likes cats, apparently.

          “I can’t believe that worked.” Cayde  murmurs. “I still just… don’t get it.”

“What were you seeking, Kell Prince?”  Warr nik  demands, the Kell suddenly focused on them fully.

          “Five wanted rogues  from the House of Exile.”

          “ It would please you to know they are nearby, yes?”

          Uldren dips his head. “Any help you could give would be most appreciated.”

“They hide in old ruins near  Reef prison. We have heard whispers. Whispers of t heir traps.”

          “Thank you for your assistance.” Uldren answers.

          “You leave… now?”

“Unless there is something more you would like to discuss, I must take my leave , Kell  Warrnik .”

“Only that I might speak with…  Aksis .”

          Uldren gestures her forwards and she obliges, chittering uncertainly with the Kell. He eventually takes her aside to where Uldren and his crew can’t hear. Cayde can.

          It’s a long few minutes before anything interesting happens, but Cayde informs him the minute something does. “Whoa, he just threatened her.” Cayde tugs his hood a little to redirect the sound. “She’s angry at him, and he’s… uh-oh. He wants to kill us, and he’s telling her to stay out of the way.”

Cayde’s  head jerks up as something bad gets his attention. “AKSIS, RUN!”

          There’s a yowl of pain  and  an injured Aksis runs towards them from the shadows.  Warrnik  chases, his swords brandished and a blade flying from his hand. Uldren drags her out of the way, the knife sinking into his shoulder. 

“Run,  Aksis ! Get out of here!”

She growls back her reply. “Not without Kell Prince!”

The Fallen of the House of Devils all flood inside at their leader’s call for help.  They crawl down the walls and from under the floor. Before long, they’re surrounded. Aksis  fights bravely beside them, her anger kindled. 

The fight doesn’t last long,  but  it’s long enough and  Uldren is exhausted by the end of it.  The remaining Fallen flee as their Kell  is eaten by Kayleigh’s power without so much as a chance to scream. Uldren slumps  a little , panting.  Kayleigh helps him sit, checking him over for wounds. He grimaces as she pulls the blade from his shoulder . Uldren swallows,  letting out a heavy breath as Kayleigh unclasps his cloak to get at the wound.  He’s patient as she patches him up , a sword cut on his arm coming to her attention as well as  one along the line of his jaw. Cayde and  Aksis  hover nearby , fretting a little.  Aksis  more than Cayd e, since Cayde is trying to piece together what’s left of her upper arm on her right.

          “Cayde.” Uldren  chuckles, wiping sweat from his brow. “You don’t have to fix her. She’s getting a promotion soon anyway.”

Aksis ’ head comes up and she chirrups excitedly. Uldren assures her that she’ll be  receiving enough ether the grow a few sizes.  She places a hand to her chest, bowing to show her gratitude. Uldren smiles.

          “It should be me thanking you,  Aksis . You could have stood by and watched like  Warrnik  asked you to.”

Aksis growls at the bodies on the floor , cursing them for trying to take her Kell away. 

          Kayleigh  helps Uldren up and catches  him  as he sways, his brow furrowing as he gets lightheaded.  She  can feel him shaking a little from exertion and settles next to him, offering her shoulder to lean on.  Uldren gladly obliges, tilting his head and taking deep, slow breaths.  Kayleigh agrees with that logic, pressing her head lightly on top of his  and closing her eyes.

          “I think that’s enough bounty hunting for one day.” 

          Uldren hums , even just the small sound exhausted. Kayleigh sighs  contentedly as his arm wraps around her and  he  nestles into her side. 

          “You, sir, need a nap.” Kayleigh  murmurs. “So… home?”

          Uldren nods.  Kayleigh has Jake bring her ship around and Cayde waits for Wash to call his in.  They did offer to give him a ride.

          “As fun as napping sounds, really, I would much rather spend my day off running around.  You kids have an exciting nap, though.”

          Kayleigh huffs at him as they  p art ways , Jake  transmatting  them straight up onto Kayleigh’s bunk. Aksis  curls up in her favorite spot, right under the heating vent  on one of the spare bunks. Uldren lays down  with a heavy groan, pulling Kayleigh to his chest .  Kayleigh tries not to lean against his shoulder, but Uldren insists on having her close. He seems more than happy to have her there anyway. 

          Kayleigh quietly monitors him when he falls asleep, lightly tracing the markings on his skin that identify him as hers. She can feel the light pressure of the connection the tattoo creates as she touches it.  Uldren  takes a little comfort in it, relaxing a little.  With a sigh, she shifts around to  face him .

          Uldren  allows her mind to drift with his,  her consciousness soothing his ails and  coaxing him to sleep more deeply. She falls asleep shortly after . She sleeps without dreaming, and so does Uldren . At least for a little while.

She ’s woken up by his  panicked shout as he sits up on the bunk. His hand  comes up to shield his face , but the only good it does  is keeping him from knocking his skull against  the low ceiling.  She gives him a moment, allowing him the space to  calm before he lays back down. Kayleigh  rubs his arm ,  providing him as much distance as she can while still  comfort ing  to him. She can feel his panic  even though he attempts to bury it .

          “It’s okay .”

          Uldren  presses his face into the makeshift pillow, baring his teeth  as he squeezes his eyes shut. “How can you know that?”

“Because you  a re Uldren Sov, and just like you get through everything else, you’ll get through this.”

Uldren makes a  noise that would have been hard to deci pher if she didn’t know him so well.  Kayleigh huffs,  putting a light hand to his face .  He brings his own up to join it, using his other to pull her in close .  He buries his face in her shoulder and she  cards gentle fingers through his hair as hot tears drop onto her skin.  Even after four years , he still has rough nights, but being consumed by the Darkness is not something one forgets easily.

          Kayleigh doesn’t  mind. She has waited hundreds of years for this, just like Cayde waited .  She isn’t about to leave him to the Darkness  that haunts him  after all they’ve been through.  Not after seeing the person that Uldren is with a little kindness and  understanding. 

“My light … ”

          Kayleigh makes a small noise to let him know she’s listening.

“ My peace. ” He murmurs, his arms holding onto her like a lifeline.  His next words are so quiet she barely hears them. “ _ My home. _ ”

“Always.”

He steadies with the promise . Kayleigh  coaxes him back into a light doze ,  reassuring him that she’ll still be there when he wakes up.  Uldren tends to surprise her when he says things like that, and this was not an exception. 

She  pulls back, playing with the white in his bangs .  If there is one thing about his hair that she loves  – other than its tendency  to stay exactly where he puts it  –  it ’s  the white streak s  that  cross  over  his  raven  colored locks.  They weren’t there the day they first met. Of course, neither was their companionship. Or her name.

          Uldren had been surprised when Kayleigh told him she didn’t have a last name. He had been pleased to give her something, after all that they’d been through. Uldren could finally give her something that she could turn into a part of herself in the same way that he had with her. He just didn’t realize that he’d given her an entire world already.

♤♤♤♤♤

          They spend the next few days  checking in  with their other informants across the quadrant. For some reason, neither of them seem very eager to visit the Prison of Elders again. Still, a lead is a lead, and the dead Kell from the House of Devils would have no reason to lie.

          So, that would be how they end up  transmattimg  in right where Petra used to wait for them.  Uldren looks around,  his eyes taking in the changes to his old home.  It all looks different than even the last time Kayleigh was here , her magnificent explosion having left  scorch marks everywhere. There  are no banners anywhere, only empty lines.  Even the candles by  the far back corner are nothing but waxy puddles on the floor. 

          “You hav e no idea how foreign this place seems now.”

Kayleigh  chuckles. “Yeah . I suppose  not.”

Uldren  checks the vaults.  “There are still some old-age exotics in here. If you want them, that  is…”

          “Of course I want them.  Who do you think you’re talking to?”

          “ The woman I love, who collects exotics, yet never changes over from  her  chosen weapons that  she’s  had  since  her  younger days.”

          “Did you just call me old?” Kayleigh snickers,  leaning over the edge of the vault and digging around.  “I think I find that offensive.”

          Uldren holds onto her waist,  ignoring the temptation  to tickle her while she’s  dangling head-first over hundreds of boxes of metal. He can hear her  turning the rows as she opens other boxes. There’s a screeching of metal as she finds one jammed shut .

          “Let me down a little would you ? I need a better reach?”

“ You’re a filthy scavenger, you know that?”

“How dare you!” 

          Uldren pretends to drop her a little and she  bends her knee to kick him, still focused on getting the box open.  She makes a disgusted noise when she manages  it.

          “ Someone left rusty weapons in here, but….  _ Oh _ .”

          “Oh? What’s  ‘oh’?”

          “ It  is me finding  a lovely, lovely Ahamkara  set  in here. It’s still moving.”

          Uldren grips her a little tighter. “How about we burn it?”

“ And waste good armor? Uldren, the magic is dormant . ”

          Uldren sighs. “ Fine, but that’s going to be the end of your digging until  we finish following this lead.”

          Kayleigh takes the armor and  shifts her weight to put her feet back on the ground, pulling her upper body  back up and out of the vault. “You just suck the joy out of  every thing.”

          “More like I ’m  actually focused on the true purpose of this visit, not just scavenging for old armor.”

Kayleigh  huffs,  pulling a helmet out of thin air. “It would help if I didn’t keep ruining mine.”

          “Well, Cayde isn ’t  aro -“

          He’s interrupted by a ship swinging in overhead and a Guardian  transmatting  down to the ground. Kayleigh tosses her helmet over a ledge  with a sigh , knowing Jake will  retrieve  it.

          “You were saying?”

          Uldren glares at her just as Cayde walks over and slings an arm around his shoulder. “Hey, guys. Just about to start your hunt?”

Uldren and Kayleigh share a sigh, walking away.

          “What? Was it something I said?”

          Kayleigh chuckles to herself  as Cayde rushes to catch up.  He helps them search  the levels, though he seems reasonably wary.  The place creaks , and all three of them are on edge because of it. Cayde saunters along like nothing is bothering him, but she can tell he doesn’t like  being back in the prison. Uldren sticks close to him, covering his back , which provides him with a little reassurance. Kayleigh stays further back , keeping an eye on the higher levels  while they walk. 

          She sees something move , warning Uldren. He taps Cayde to get his attention  and they both rally back to Kayleigh. They close ranks, the boys  holding front while Kayleigh watches their six.  They continue that way for a long few minutes until  they come across  a section that branches off in two directions.

          Kayleigh  lets out a steady breath . “Okay, you two take the left, I’ll go right. You’ve got comms. Call if you run into trouble. I mean it.”

          Cayde nods. “Deal. ”

He and Uldren  take off at a swift pace, clearing corners as quickly as possible.  The tunnel narrows ,  and Uldren notes that Cayde slows down a bit,  his eyes scanning  every  dark spot twice.  He won’t even let his Ghost come out to  use as a flashlight.

          “ Did you hear that?”

          Uldren stills, tilting his head. “The  noise in the walls?”

Cayde swears lowly. “ I was hoping that was just me.”

“Sorry to disappoint.”

The noise steadily grows loude r and U ldren pulls out his  blade. They crawl through a small passage and  cross over into the remains of  a room of  destroyed cell s . Darkness licks at the edges  of the  last one  and Uldren stumbles back a step. Cayde  pauses .

          “ I, uh, I didn’t realize we’d be coming through here.”

Uldren shakes his head, avoiding looking at the  last cell as he treads past. “It is all right.”

          Uldren stops at the exit, bowing his head. He waits for Cayde to catch up from where he’s still standing next to Uldren’s cell. Uldren can still hear him moving around back there, but he can’t bring himself to look. He only manages it when an explosion throws him forwards and out the door. Uldren pushes himself up, turning to see what happened. 

          “Cayde?”

Cayde climbs out of an open cell, his cloak on fire. “Ah! Hot, hot!  Woop s!” he stumbles, landing on the floor. “Ow! Hey, bad fire!”

          Uldren pulls out of his daze  enough to help put him out . “What did you do that for?”

Cayde chuckles. “Hey, I tried to walk past it, but it just  kinda … you know, exploded.”

Uldren give s  him a dubious look , but he’s grateful for the effort.  He helps Cayde to his feet  and the Hunter  holds the end of his cloak in his hands while his Ghost repairs it. He quickly hides the Ghost as the sound in the walls comes back. 

Uldre n peers around the corner leading out o nto the central  walkway. “It looks different than I remember.”

          “Yeah. That happens when someone shoots down the main security console and rides it to the floor.” Cayde says casually.

Uldren looks up at the frayed remainder of wires. “Shot it down? ” he leans over the railing, gazing down at the rubble on the ground. “T hat’s not something you just shoot down.”

          “ It was damaged. Just a couple bullets from the Ace got the job done.”

          Uldren nods  and they resume their search.  Cayde  get  antsy , which  puts  Uldren on edge  enough that  he slides into the space between worlds . Cayde  whirls around when he doesn’t find Uldren next to him, rolling backwards and turning invisible. 

          “Uldren?”

          “Still here. Just… stay invisible. I can sense you.”

“Don’t be pulling any tricks in here. You’d  be liable to  get yourself shot.”

          “Duly noted.”

Cayde might have made a joke or something of the sort to lighten the mood at that point, but  three of the wanted  escapee s drop down from a higher level. Uldren stills as  they pass in front of him, croaking and chittering .  The y follow the Fallen  down  further into the base ,  passing cell blocks filled with the bodies of low-ranking Dregs and Vandals.  They’re pretty fresh.

Cayde walks  cautiously int o  their lair, Uldren following shortly after . They have it filled with ether  capsules, House of Exile sigils plastered all over them.  U ldren  loses his focus as a fourth of the wanted Fallen  slams into his back. It shrieks with  surprise and Uldren s lides back into sight. 

Cayde sighs. “Ah , well.  That’s just shiny, now isn’t it?”  H e  shows  himself.

          The  Captain  that  had knocked into Uldren recovers and tries to put a spear through his back.  Uldren turns,  knocking the  s pear aside and kicking the Captain  away .  Cayde takes on two other s  while the forth  goes after Uldren . A door  opens as Cayde is forced to back up and  he  parries a  blow from a spear.  One with two long blades  takes a stab at him and he  twists ,  ducking under the  blade  and hurling daggers at  his other attacker.

“Uldren, how’s it going?!”

Cayde hears  him  grunt in response, not  in any good position to distract himself. His attackers are  on either side of him , but Uldren has definitely been training with Kayleigh in the ranged combat area. Cayde is distracted a little while checking on his  Ghostless  companion and he gets jerked around by his cloak during his mind’s absence. 

          Uldren  reminds Cayde of a  whirlwind. At least, he does from  Cayde’s  upside-down position on the floor. They disappear down another corridor while Cayde  continues  his own battle.

          The corridor is cluttered with crates and tubes, all stocked like the Fallen are waiting for the end of the world.  Uldren  steps with the greatest of care. His short sword is providing less and less advantage as they press him backwards. He glances b ehind him , finding that he is just on the edge of an old fan tunnel. It’s too large to jump across and it looks rusty enough to give a Guardian a shot at developing tetanus. 

He grimaces ,  looking at his attackers as they approach . They’re mocking him, knowing he’s cornered.  Uldren growls at them, daring them to come closer .  He calls out to Cayde for a little support while also communicating with Kayleigh that he’s in trouble. He’s a few feet from the edge of the shaft now . His daggers are gone, either still stuck in the Fallen or unfortunately on the ground somewhere.  The Fallen croak to each other , shifting closer to Uldren. 

          “Just hold on, buddy! I’m  comin ’ !”

Uldren  blocks a strike from the one on the left and the other slices just under his ribs.  Uldren  stumbles back,  shielding his chest with one arm . There are only a couple feet left to the edge.

          “Hey, let go!  Oh, that looked painful!  Just a sec,  Uldren !”

Uldren  receives a blinding hit to the face ,  moving with the  hit to diffuse momentum.  They could easy have killed him by now, but  these Fallen are tormentors. That’s why they were exiled in the first place .  They wrestle Uldren down, putting a knife to his throat as he wheezes,  struggling to see straight as his vision swims.  At the entrance to the corridor, he spots Cayde coming towards him .

          He’s wreathed with flames as he pulls out his Golden Gun, the Captain with its blade at  Uldren’s  neck  drifting apart in ashes . The knife drops and the other Captain shrieks, shoving  Uldren  back wards  before he dies. Cayde almost has  ahold  of him before he overbalances. 

          Uldren falls between the large rusted blades ,  a weightless feeling washing over him before  he  hits the first support, the metal grate under him snapping and bending.  He falls another twenty feet , turning to hit the bottom grate with his shoulder .  He gasps  as h e feels an uncomfortable pressure  in his chest , but he doesn’t have time to  register what it means before he hits the ground . 

          He lies there, dazed for a long minute. The small buffets of air under  Cayde’s  jumps are muffled .  Uldren takes in a choked breath ,  pain making it hard to move. His  left  arm is folded  under his body in front of his ribs in an attempt to protect them. 

          Cayde touches his shoulder . “ Hey, just take it easy. Did you talk to Kayleigh?”

          “She ’s –…” Uldren winces, coughing. “She’s coming .  _ She’s coming. _ ”  He says breathlessly. 

          “Easy, easy. Can you move?”

          Uldren nods , a cut on his brow leaving blood on the floor. “I just… just need a minute.”

          “That was a  pretty bad fall .”

          Uldren  presses his other hand to the floor and  pulls his  legs  underneath him, Cayde steadying him as he attempts to get to his  knees. Uldren lets out a strangled noise, groaning  as he  cradles  his ribs. Cayde tries to pull his arm away, eliciting a short shout of pain from him. 

          Cayde stops , helping him pull o ff his glove. “Okay, looks like … looks, okay, I’m not a doctor. Wash?”

          Wash appears and Cayde glances around  to make sure they’re alone. “It’s  a fracture.  All things considered, he’s doing  okay. Not great, but okay. No  hemorrhaging .  No breaks in  his  ribs. Mild concussion … he should be fine .”

          Uldren groans again,  pushing the Ghost away. “I don’t know how much I care for your definition  of  ‘fine’.”

          Cayde puts a cautious hand on his shoulder , not wanting to accidentally hurt him more than he already is. Uldren winces anyway, moving his arm to get a look at the slice under his ribs.  He pants, a little dizzy.

          “It’s only skin -deep . ” Wash says.

          Cayde looks over the cut, helping him clean it. Kayleigh shows up about halfway though. She cups the side of his face and he looks up at her. Cayde tries to be as invisible as possible while they come to grips with the close call. They stay near to one another for about five minutes after Cayde finishes cleaning, their foreheads pressed together. Cayde has never seen something so… intimate, he supposes. The closeness of two minds that could never have been more different. _ Awkward third wheel, ‘tis me. _

          Still, in almost no time a t all, she’s discussing what happened  after they split up.  She hadn’t encountered any trouble  with her passage until the last Captain came out of nowhere with a small army.  And by army, she apparently meant a real army. She takes them to see  the mess she made once they get Uldren on his feet.

Cayde is very careful to ensure both of their saf ety.  Kayleigh can’t help but smile at him and wonder how she was blessed with such an amazing friend. He would tell her that she’s just lucky that way. 

“Well, we got our bounties.” Kayleigh chirps happily.

          “ Yes. I suppose that’s true. Though, that will lead to the conclusion of our partnership with the House of Winter. ”

          “I don’t know about that .  Virkses  said he was considering a treaty  when we left. And you know me. I always have good luck when it comes to making friends. ” They step over a Fallen body. “When I want to, that is.”

Uldren chuckles, wincing. “ I’ve noticed. I do wonder what the  Ahamkara  would have thought of you.”

“ I don’t know .  That’s a good question. ”

          Uldren pulls her under his good arm. “Please don’t go getting any ideas.”

Kayleig h laughs in that way that says she’s already had them . 

          After a little medical attention back at the Tower and a good scolding from  his sister, Uldren is all set for some very light adventure.  Very, very light. 

That is how Uldren ends up keeping score for Crucible while Kayleigh blows off some steam.  From what he’s seen, Kayleigh just doesn’t seem to die , which means that her opponents don’t stand a chance while her team is thrilled to have her.  He can’t help but  question as to how it was that shooting each other became fun.

          After about an hour of boredom, his sister joins him. “Brother. ”

          “My queen.”

          “ How are you?”

          Uldren gives her a funny look. “You were  yelling at me three hours ago. You already know.”

          “And I can’t check on you? As queen, can I not do as I see fit  i n being certain your state is improving?”

Uldren raises his hands in defeat, a small gesture  that he’d picked up from Cayde while they played poker.  “No, I would never deign to keep you from your duties as queen, though, you do seem to disrupt them quite efficiently while you  _ dote _  over me.”

          Mara  laughs lightly. “There were days when you would never have  allowed it.”

          Uldren dips his head a little, rubbing at the itchy skin around the cut on his brow. “There was also a time that I would have killed for your approval.  I  _ did _ . ”

          Mara nudges him, though, she isn’t really there . Uldren tries not to wince, but he is very sore.  Mara watches the next match with interest , grinning like a cat as Kayleigh shred the ranks of the other team.

          “What are they doing?”

“Killing each other. What does it look like?”

          “For sport?”

          “Glory, tokens, armor , engrams. There are any number of reasons as far as I can tell.”

          “ Are you bored up here?”

          “Only in being idle.  I enjoy watching Kayleigh work.”

          Mara glances down at the arena where Kayleigh has cast her  Dawnblade .  The opposing side falls under her laurels of flame, their cutting edge slicing  clear through some of them.  “Who wouldn’t? She’s incredible, and powerful.”

“I know. I’ve taught her everything I possibly could, even learned a few things from her.”

“Does she use her Awoken mind to her advantage?”

          “ She balances between the two aspects of herself. She says it was no different than mastering the Void or Arc. She says it feels like another subclass , but one that she can pair with another.” Uldren chuckles.  “The side-effect of being a Warlock, I suppose.”

Mara hums, musing thoughtfully.  “I suppose if she has reached the bounds of your ability, I could continue her education, if you wish?”

          Uldren  raises a brow , not  holding onto the comment on his ability as he once might have.  He knows his limits, and he  is fully aware of the fact that Mara does, too. “That, dear sister, is a question for her.”

“I have been considering it in recent times as I try to  gather  the  old strength of the Awoken. It is  never in doubt that one day, I will not be able to continue my rule.”

“Mara, don’t- “

“Uldren, as a queen, it is also my duty to secure the future of my people. If I were to take  Kayleigh as a student, she would be my protégé. Next in line for the crown . If the Awoken are to flourish and survive,  we will require strong leadership, and leadership that is well-known and highly respected.”

          Uldren’s mouth turns down into a frown. “There is no one I would rather  give my allegiance to than  Kayleigh after you... become unable , but can we not do this now? Losing you nearly destroyed me  the first time and I would rather not contemplate at current the ramifications of a second.”

          Mara leans against him , Uldren making his usual move to kiss the top of her head.  “I  just… my dear,  _ dear _  little brother,  require a little reassurance. Securing the future of my people,  _ your _  future, it- well, it makes me feel better.”

          “ I know that it does , but reassurance i s not what it brings me.”

          “ No, but I would wish it to bring you joy one day .”

          “ _ I _  already have joy. ” He points down at Kayleigh  as she turns anther Guardian to ashes. “She’s right down there.”

          Mara hums again. “As I recall, you put a knife to her throat the day you met.”

“She has repaid me for it, as have her brothers .”

          Mara raises a brow. “Brothers?”

          “Cayde and Shiro. Adoptive, of course, but they’re hers.”

“And Cayde?  How do you feel about him?”

          Uldren smiles down at Kayleigh and she waves, a wide grin on her face. “Cayde has been nothing but helpful since the day  Kayleigh  rescued me.  He trusts her, and she him.”

          “And you?”

          “Yes.  Without question.”

          Mara laughs.  “I must be honest with you ,  brother. I did not expect this for you in all my  musings. You weren’t a particularly happy  person before  her. Or after, either. You despised her.”

          “I didn’t know her, and  I didn’t want to.”

          “Such a shame that you’ve gone so soft as to marry her, don’t you think? ” Mara  says, her tone teasing.

          Uldren  nudges her back. “I’m not soft.”

          “So that’s why  you melt when she smiles at you?”

          “ _ Mara _ .” Uldren warns.

Mara shrugs. “I am merely observing, as always.  You craved my attention once, and now that you have it, are you not happy?”

          “Simply  _ thrilled _ .” Uldren retorts, his lips ticking up.

          “ Mmm. It is very good, brother, to see you smile . I do prefer it to  the permanent scowl you once wore.”

          Uldren ’s brow furrows and he looks at her.

          “Don’t tell me you  don’t remember. I could scarcely get you to twitch unless we were possibly leading Guardians to their deaths . For someone who was so devoted, you certainly raised plenty of  arguments.”

          “Never let it be said that my council was a wise one.  And that had been a…  a  long day, the day that Kayleigh  came to us.”

          “Yes, as I recall, it took you an awfully long time to get out of bed.  I was beginning to wonder if you’d died. ”

Uldren  lets out a short bit of laughter. “No. No, I hadn’t died, I simply… couldn’t bring myself to get up.”

“Yes, you had been a little… depressed, I suppose.”

          “Chasing your approval ,  while also attempting to get you to  punish me for breaking every rule possible and not getting either tends to do that.  I  didn’t think you cared.”

“It is somewhat clearer now, is it not?”

Uldren wraps his arm around her and she solidifies a bit, joining him more fully. “Mara, the very fact that you are here  gives evidence to that truth. ”

Uldren settles in  to spect ate, Kayleigh still playing down  on the ground.  His  life has become so  much easier with her at his side.  He has a real family , a ketch,  maybe even  friends, and a  woman for whom he would die. It’s difficult to remember who he had been before . Before Riven,  the Darkness,  and Oryx, and every bad thing that had molded him into the cynical and condescending man he was the day  that Kayleigh came to him.

Uldren leans forward, peering down at his  wife as she  mops the floor with yet another team. She does have an unfair advantage .

          “I love you, Kayleigh Sov, until my dying day.”

Both Mara and Kayleigh look at him, Mara with pride and Kayleigh with devotion.  Kayleigh offers him the same vow before running off to stab some poor Warlock in the back. 

          Yes. That woman is his, and his alone. And he will be hers, always.


End file.
